Our holdings include hundreds of glass and film negatives/transparencies that we've scanned ourselves; in addition, many other photos on this site were extracted from reference images (high-resolution tiffs) in the Library of Congress research archive. (To query the database click here.) They are adjusted, restored and reworked by your webmaster in accordance with his aesthetic sensibilities before being downsized and turned into the jpegs you see here. All of these images (including "derivative works") are protected by copyright laws of the United States and other jurisdictions and may not be sold, reproduced or otherwise used for commercial purposes without permission.

Minneapolis Public Library: 1900

The Minneapolis Public Library circa 1900-1906. This 1884 Romanesque Revival building, designed by Long and Kees, was razed in the 1950s and is now a parking lot. Detroit Publishing Company glass negative. View full size.

Thank goodness, Long and Kees' magnificent City Hall remains in all its glory. I had never seen this gem before! You may want to add the modifier "Richardsonian" to your caption. Are there interior photos available?

Our family's ritual utterance when catching sight of the arrogant, pointy whatever-the -heck it is that has landed on top of the new library. Without the Pointy Thing the library's exterior would be almost identical to that of the building it replaced.

There was another Minneapolis Public Library between the romanesque revival one and the current Ikea Shelf one. It was a nice International Style building on Hennepin Avenue. I've been to the new library. It uses available light like no other building I've been in. I like it.

I agree with the commentary about the new library vs the old one. However after seeing it featured a Twin Cities building I'm just as glad the estimable Lileks didn't post the photo. I don't think I could stand another week of sniping, cheap shots and drama. Although, I admit, I indulged in it.

Cesar Pelli designed the library. Personally I love it. Although I suppose if your reactions run to ICK and APPALLING, you might be happier with the model of Cinderella's castle in the Juvenile section. It's pink!

As a library employee who works in a restored Carnegie library (with an addition that is VERY similar in style to the original building) I can only say that I find the new "improved" building APPALLING. I am not against new building, but this style of architecture is one I call "Monday Morning" style: the architect comes in on Monday morning with a hangover and this is the best s/he can come up with! I agree that not having to ask for a book in storage or closed stacks is a good thing, but to eliminate all charm in the name if function is criminal.

I agree that it was a shame to raze this building. I am a huge fan of Historic Preservation. Sometimes I try to understand what people were thinking when they wanted to get rid of structures such as this. I suppose by the standards of the 1950s (think of those case study homes) a building like this looked fussy and maybe even reminded people of unpleasant Victorian restraints and prejudices. Hard to believe this fortress was only given 50 years to stand.

The old library was replaced by a bland 1950s municipal building farther north on Hennepin as part of the Gateway Commons redevelopment. The current library was built on that site.

The new building (by Cesar Pelli) is a stunner: open and airy, with easy access to every book in the collection. You can go to the archives and use the hydraulic bookshelves on your own -- don't need to request a book from a librarian. It has fireplaces, plenty of places to lounge and read -- very impressive.

Can't say what church it is ... I'm not much for the 10th and Hennepin scene, and Google's image resolution isn't quite up to the Shorpy level. Maybe if I'm ever driving by it, I'll check and let everyone know.

I've never seen a more formidable, unwelcoming building than the current library. I agree with you, Dave, about the Ikea bookshelf but suspect you could have done better than this with or without the instructions.

Bicycles are happy to be left, unmolested, curbside! How novel! This is another excellent photo, Dave! I love the building's design, even though its very busy with all of that fancy brocade work and delightful pineapple stuff going on uptop. Can anyone tell us how this place might be defined, stylistically? Also, any word on what that lovely church in back was - or is?

Shorpy.com | History in HD is a vintage photo archive featuring thousands of high-definition images from the 1850s to 1960s. (Available as fine-art prints from the Shorpy Archive.) The site is named after Shorpy Higginbotham, a teenage coal miner who lived 100 years ago.